Neringa Forest Architecture has been selected among this year’s finalists for the New European Bauhaus (NEB) Prizes, this project is presented at the STRAND A – NEB Champions, Reconnecting With Nature category.
Neringa Forest Architecture seeks to enhance the ways society negotiates and understands the forest long-term. The project explores the balance between forest industries and biodiversity in the forest space through research and collaborations with cultural practices. It investigates the cultural landscape of the Curonian Spit forests as a case study in the context of the wider region, considering the entanglement of ecologies, representations, colonial and industrial narratives.
The NFA started by diverting timber extracted in the Curonian Spit forest initially designated for biofuel and built a Natural Timber Seasoning Shed at the Nida Art Colony (NAC) of Vilnius Academy of Arts in Nida, it serves as an archive, documenting timber samples, a resource storage and public display of forest histories and planning.
This local timber resource became the basis of an artistic research residency program at NAC that involves architects, artists, researchers, and journalists. The assembly promotes a wider understanding of the forest environment, by tracing its extractivist industrial practices and processes and their impact on biodiversity. Engagement is seeking wider public awareness and agency to influence decisions in contemporary forest.
From timber collected over three years, NFA built and curated The Children’s Forest Pavilion, Lithuania at the International Architecture Exhibition, la Biennale di Venezia 2023 the installation composed as an educational playscape and conceived to acknowledge the unique approaches of children to observe, draw conclusions, explain the forest, and understanding that we are part of it.
Currently Neringa Forest Architecture partners with Dutch Art Institute DAI Roaming Academy, MA in Art Praxis and leads COOP study group FOREST IS LONG_TERM. And later this year NFA will present a new project at arc en rêve centre d’architecture in Bordeaux as part of Season of Lithuania in France 2024.
Project credits
Neringa Forest Architecture is a project by Jurga Daubaraitė, Egija Inzule and Jonas Žukauskas.
Neringa Forest Architecture research/residency programme at Nida Art Colony of Vilnius Academy of Arts, Nida, Lithuania
Participants and contributors is a growing group of architects, artists and designers, carpenters, researchers, film editors, journalists, curators, botanists, geologists, geographers, social and natural scientists, naturalists and other professionals from within the field of forest studies who have been participating to the Neringa Forest Architecture project throughout 2020–2023. Their stay in Nida was funded by the Lithuanian Council for Culture, Neringa Capital of Culture 2021, and Nordic Culture Point.
Adomas Zubė, journalist
Agata Marzecova, researcher ecology, photography
Aistė Ambrazevičiūtė, architect and artist
Andrej Polukord, artist
Anita Zariņa, geographer
Anne Hovad Fischer, film editor
Antanas Gerlikas, artist
Anni Laakso, sculptor
Antti Auvinen, architect
colectivo amasijo, artists collective
Dovilė Lapinskaitė, artist
Emma Holmberg, ecologist
Gabrielė Grigorjeva, spatial practitioner and researcher
Jan Lütjohann, artist
Jurgis Paškevičius, artist
Kathryn Wood, artist
Laura Grabštienė, artist
Mantas Petraitis, architect
Milda Laužikaitė, artist
Monika Janulevičiūtė, artist and designer
Nina Svensson, artist
Phillipp von Hase, artist and carpenter
Signe Pelne, spatial researcher
Riitta (Nyyskä) Nykänen, environmental educator, forest activist
Sallamari Rantala, artist and researcher
Toms Kokins, architect
Natural Timber Seasoning Shed at Nida Art Colony of Vilnius Academy of Arts, Nida, Lithuania
Architecture: Jonas Žukauskas and Jurga Daubaraitė
Concept and coordination: Jurga Daubaraitė, Egija Inzule, Jonas Žukauskas
Construction works: Jonas Žukauskas and Jurgis Paškevičius
with kind help by: by Nerijus Rimkus, Robertas Narkus, Rudolfas Levulis, Denisas Kolomyckis, NAC team, Aleksandras Tereščenko, Eugenij Veres
Children’s Forest Pavilion, Lithuania at the 18th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia 2023
18 May – 26 November 2023
2125 Campo Tana, Castello, Venice
Contributors: Aistė Ambrazevičiūtė, Ancient Woods Foundation, Gabrielė Grigorjevaitė, Laura Garbštienė, Mustarinda Association (Tiina Arjukka Hirvonen, Michaela Casková, Robin Everett, Riitta (Nyyskä) Nykänen), Mantas Peteraitis, School of Creativity (Kristupas Sabolius), New Academy (Ikko Alaska, Nene Tsuboi, Tuomas Toivonen), Urbonas Studio (Nomeda & Gediminas Urbonas), Kornelija Žalpytė
Curators: Jurga Daubaraitė, Egija Inzule, Jonas Žukauskas
Commissioner: Dr Ines Weizman
Architecture: Jonas Žukauskas in collaboration with Antanas Gerlikas, Jurgis Paškevičius, Anton Shramkov
Graphic design: Monika Janulevičiūtė
Poster illustration: Izadora Daubaraitė Žukauskaitė
Moss hats and shawls: Banan Vedro, Circulation of Infernation, Doch, Heorhii Hohatadze
Video production: Eitvydas Doškus, Elis Hannikainen
Video editing: Ignė Narbutaitė
Lighting: Martynas Kazimierėnas
Photo documentation: Rasa Juškevičiūtė
Coordination: Dovilė Lapinskaitė
Communication: Stefanija Jokštytė, Anna Luise Schubert, Alexandra Bondarev
Translation and proofreading: Alexandra Bondarev, Gemma Lloyd
Project assistant: Vilius Vaitiekūnas
Pavilion attendants: Rugilė Akambakaitė, Magdalena Beliavska, Augusta Fišerytė, Aistė Gaidilionytė, Rimantas Giedra, Gustė Kripaitė, Marta Dorotėja Lekavičiūtė, Gabija Naikauskaitė, Viktorija Narbutaitė, Kamilė Vasiliauskaitė, Gabrielė Vrublevska
Accounting: Rasa Bliakevič
Coordination in Venice: Marco Scurati
Legal consulting: Neringa Savickė, Kotryna Volodkaitė
Organised by: Neringa Forest Architecture
Implemented by: Nida Art Colony of Vilnius Academy of Arts
Partner: Centre for Documentary Architecture
Supported by: Neringa Municipality, Nordic Culture Point, Lithuanian Council for Culture, Baltic Culture Fund
Thanks to: Artnews.lt, Gražina Banienė, Adriano Berengo, Yulia Derenko, Gaetano di Gregorio, Aurora Fonda, Laura Gabrielaitytė-Kazulėnienė, Pranas Gudaitis, Monika Kalinauskaitė, Dr. Mindaugas Lapelė, Laguna nel Bicchiere – Le Vigne Ritrovate, Marija Olšauskaitė, Rimantė Paulauskaitė-Digaitienė and Dr. Ainis Pivoras from the Ancient Woods Foundation, Viktorija Rybakova, Mindaugas Survila, Nida Forestry, Kretinga Forestry, the Curonian Spit National Park
Nida Art Colony of Vilnius Academy of Arts: Milena Černiakaitė, Vasilisa Filatova, Alberta Globienė, Giedrius Globys, Asta Jackutė, Dalia Jokūbauskaitė, Lina Košeleva, Aldona Lankauskienė, Elena Orlovienė, Daura Polonskytė, Ieva Skauronė, Yana Ustymenko, Katerina Vaseko, Tetjana Volosiuk
All the children, educators, and schools who participated in workshops in Lithuania and NFA NEB VIDEO VOICOVER TEXT + PROJECT CREDITS
Finland: Puolankajärvi Comprehensive School (Puolanka, FI), Hyrynsalmi Comprehensive School (Hyrynsalmi, FI), Neringa Gymnasium (Nida, LT), Young Forest Friends (Kretinga, LT), Baltupiai Progymnasium (Vilnius, LT), Gerosios Vilties Progymnasium (Vilnius, LT), Emilijos Pliaterytės Progymnasium (Vilnius, LT), Pavilnys Progymnasium (Vilnius, LT), Sietuva Progymnasium (Vilnius, LT), Simonas Konarskis Gymnasium (Vilnius, LT), Simonas Stanevičius Progymnasium (Vilnius, LT), Vasily Kachalov Gymnasium (Vilnius, LT), Vilnius Sofya Kovalevskaya Progymnasium (Vilnius, LT)
